PALS 2020 Annual Report

PHILLIPS ACADEMY OUTREACH PROGRAM REPORT

2020 PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS OUR MISSION Founded in 1988, PALS is an academic-year tutoring and high school preparation program for students from the city of Lawrence, Massachusetts. PALS, which stands for Phillips Academy, Andover, and Lawrence Schools, brings middle schoolers together with tutors from Phillips

In its first year under the leadership of new director Nicole Shadeed, the 2019–2020 PALS program underwent important changes to its overall structure and format:

 HIGH SCHOOL APPLICATION SUPPORT—In fall and winter, on-site, school-based counselors supported nearly 30 8th-grade PALS participants as they navigated the high school application process.

 TUTORS AS TEACHERS—Fifteen Phillips Academy and Andover High School students met weekly in winter and early spring to develop curriculum and deliver their lessons to our middle schoolers.

Academy and Andover High School—for the benefit of all.

 REMOVING BARRIERS—Unlike previous years, PALS was open to all interested 7th- and 8th-graders

WHO WE SERVE PALS works with students beginning in the spring of 6th grade and provides programming through the summer before high school.

in our partner schools during the 2019–2020 academic year. We welcomed 48 different students to our three spring sessions. (Four additional sessions were cancelled due to the pandemic.)

 REMOTE SELF-STUDY SUMMER 2020—Continuing to remove issues of access, every student who requested an application for PALS Summer 2020 was invited to participate in our four-week program in July.

WHAT WE DO

 FOCUS ON MINDFULNESS—Daily meditation videos and guided journals were central to the PALS

Along with academic enrichment, study skills, and

summer experience, helping students learn to better navigate emotions, build resilience, and

learning strategies, PALS provides information about high

cultivate a growth mindset.

school options and support for a successful transition to secondary school.

 DIGITAL RESOURCES—PALS’ redesigned website is now a great resource for local students, families, and school counselors. It offers a high school application video series that includes how to apply for financial aid, plus information and advice for new high school students.

Visit andover.edu/pals to learn more about the people and impact of PALS.

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4

PALS partner middle schools

daily mindfulness exercises shared

A.B. BRUCE SCHOOL • SPARK ACADEMY PARTHUM MIDDLE SCHOOL UP ACADEMY LEONARD

“

300

NICOLE SHADEED Director

pounds of books & school supplies shipped to

In a year filled with uncertainty and

44

challenge, PALS remains constant.

The education of our youth is more

“

My favorite part about PALS this summer was being able to focus on my mental and physical wellbeing instead of just learning standard school things.”

—Rising 9th-grader

PALS 2020 summer students

important than ever, and the needs of our partner schools and the students we serve remain at the forefront of our work. Just as it has for the past 32 years, PALS continues to be focused on the positive impact it has on our tutors, participants, and community.”

Born and raised in Lawrence, Nicole Shadeed attended the city’s K–12 public

“

PALS helped my child learn how to manage and organize her studies. She has a way better mindset about her future and appears to be more confident about high school.”

—Parent of a rising 9th-grader

schools. A first-generation college graduate

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volunteers supported our work and helped create videos about the high school application process

and MA degree recipient, Shadeed returned to Lawrence High School as an English teacher and later became a school counselor.

In addition to leading PALS, Shadeed is associate director of College Counseling at Phillips Academy.

528

minutes of video footage posted to the PALS website

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PALS graduates received gifts of school supplies in honor of former PALS director Marvin A. Coote

“The books PALS sent helped strengthen my mindset and adjust my teen years overall. I am

“The PALS summer program has always

program. I was happy

preparation for younger students for

to private/independent high schools.

This past summer, however, PALS was even more essential and more appreciated due to the COVID-19 pandemic, because students lost out on a lot of the usual resources that would

every time I received an

MUCH-NEEDED STABILITY at a DIFFICULT TIME

have prepared them for the high school

The coronavirus has hit the Lawrence community

application process.”

harder than most neighboring cities and towns.

email with updates about what I was going to learn that week. I’m glad they asked if I wanted to join

was very nervous about applying to high school.”

“Being a part of PALS

racial injustices and educational disparities, we

made my summer

know that PALS still has work to do. this past summer. The teachers really cared and took time to check

TENCEY

up on us and email. I was

easier and better. The teachers always made

We look to increase our work in building academic confidence and self-advocacy, identity exploration, and postsecondary and career investigation.

Through reimagining our program, we hope to

JAHEIDY

Rising 8th-grader

again this fall, because I

As we continually face the unrelenting realities of

“PALS helped distract me

what I learned at PALS.”

“PALS was a really helpful

been very important in providing proper

for students who are planning to apply

high school because of

Rising 9th-grader

GEAR UP Coordinator & Teacher, Spark Academy, Lawrence, Mass.

their next school year—and especially

having an easier time in

RACHEL

LUILLY GONZALEZ

ANGELA

Rising 7th-grader

me feel comfortable and welcomed. The main thing that I think I

accomplished well was my journal. Sayings

given a lot of resources to

support students as they start to envision their

keep my brain working,

own futures and develop the skills and strategies

‘You’re important’ made me realize mistakes

and even though the program was remote,

that will help them flourish in middle school,

are not failures. I look forward to attending

I would say it was really effective. I think

high school, and beyond.

PALS next year because even though I was

Rising 9th-grader

PALS definitely helped prepare me for high school.”

like ‘Mistakes happen, and that’s OK’ or

doing extra work, it was actually so fun and cool to experience.”

These generous 2019–2020 donors provided vital resources for PALS students and helped ensure the program’s continued success. Thank you!

Foundations Charles E. Foisy & Florida C.A. Foisy Foundation Greater Lawrence Summer Fund Josephine G. Russell Trust Artemas W. Stearns Trust Waldo Trust

Individuals Anonymous Djenan Khayatt Akel ’85 & Tarek Akel Murali Aravamudan & Lakshmi Murali P’16 Katherine Moore Arrington ’83 Rachel L. Bain ’98 Donald T. Barry & Roxanne Scott Barry P’94, ’97, ’02 Sharon Beckwith GP’17, ’19, ’21 Maricella G. Borroel ’98 Robert A. Briggs ’82, P’11 Victoria S. Briggs ’11 LaShawnda Brooks Louis M. Bernieri P’96, ’10 & Heather C. Bryant Susannah Smoot Campbell ’93 & Neil P. Campbell Ellinor Parnes Campbell ’01 & John-Paul Campbell Mary L. Cataudella ’81 & William A. MacDonald P’19 Nicole H. & John Cherubini Carolyn Chica ’08 Kathleen Cleary Bradford J. Colbert ’06 Kevin A. Connolly ’74 & Diane Connolly Rebecca A. Cullen ’90 Grace E. Curley ’81, P’14, ’20 Sherene S. Davidson ’07 Michael R. Deschenes ’91 & Mary-Ellen Odesse

Michael J. & Rose Marie DiResta P’00 Peter L. Drench P’90, ’95 & Anne Ferguson Patricia H. & George H. Edmonds P’79, ’82 Mariano L. Ezpeleta Jr. & Mary Rose Ezpeleta P’84, ’85, ’90 Lloyd P. Farrar ’52 & Doris V. Farrar Patrick J. & Karen J. Farrell P’08 Nathaniel M. Fowler ’99 Alan F. French P’77, ’82 Andrew Frishman ’93 & Leigh Needleman Kay B. Frishman P’93 Elinor Cahill Georgopulo ’44 Krystal Joyce Gill ’81 & Joseph W. Gill Riley K. Gillis ’19 Benjamin & Mona K. Goldthwaite P’18, ’20, ’22 Philip J. Goss ’84 Henry H. Hammond ’54 Hongling Han & Qiegang Long P’21 Ish Harshawat ’98 & Emma Acker John P. & Kathleen Hess Julia S. Horowitz ’73 & Philip Mittleman Carly House Emily N. Huang Paula Reardon Johnson ’94 Marianna D. Jordan ’09 Matthew P. Kahn ’06 Lauren E. Kim ’13 SukHee C. Kim ’98 Durgesh A. Kudchadkar ’94 Nathaniel Lavin ’07 Alexandra L. Leach ’19 Stephen P. Levy ’09 & Veronica A. Faller ’09 Mela Lew ’79 & Harold H. Leach Jr. P’19, ’21 Thomas P. Lockerby & Kathleen J. McCrickerd

Angela S. Lorenz ’83 & Giovanni Figliomeni P’14 Eleanor Coneeney Lyons P’78, ’81, ’83, ’89, GP’11, ’14 Patrick J. Maher ’09 & Victoria N. Maher ’09 Anne & Scott A. Marino P’19 Paul A. Miller & Carol MacDonald Miller P’86 L. Nneka Mobbisson-Etuk ’92 Kaytlin A. Morris ’11 Samuel A. Newell & Ilana Wind Newell P’18, ’20 Susannah C. Parker ’98 Beth & Timothy Parsons Daniel S. Rabinovitz ’97 & Darcy Lapp-Rabinovitz Habib & Sandra S. Rahman P’08, ’10 Nicaury M. Rodriguez Bryan Rosenstrauch & Heidi Schwarzwald Rosenstrauch P’23, ’24 David L. Ross ’70 Trevor T. Sanders ’07 Beverly A. Schiripo Lori Goodman Seegers ’73, P’05 Frank & Linda M. Shadeed Nicole K. Shadeed & Sean J. McCarthy Aram J. Shrestinian ’11 Anne E. Simeone ’99 Deborah L. Stahl-Hannam ’80, P’17 Susan Garth Stott P’67, ’88 Sylvia L. Thayer ’54 & J. Philip Zaeder P’79, ’83, GP’17, ’18 Barbara Corwin Timken ’66 Ernesto & Cristina G. Valdesolo P’96, ’99 Theresa & Eric Vensel P’22 Jeff C. Woodhead ’84 & Laura Woodhead George S. & Eleni M. Xifaras P’18 Earl C. Yen & Lucene L. Tong P’18, ’24

This list reflects gifts received from July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020. P = Phillips Academy Parent GP = Phillips Academy Grandparent

andover.edu/pals

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE In these challenging times, the ongoing support of alumni, parents, and friends is especially critical to PALS. Your gift—of any size—will help these young students strengthen their academic skills, connect with mentors, develop learning strategies, and make a more successful transition to high school.

SUPPORT PALS TODAY To learn more about supporting PALS, please contact Beth Parsons, director for museums and educational outreach, at 978-749-4523 or bparsons@andover.edu.

A PRIVATE SCHOOL WITH A PUBLIC PURPOSE Phillips Academy’s four educational outreach programs—Andover Bread Loaf, the Institute for Recruitment of Teachers, (MS)2, and PALS—have long served as resources for students and teachers locally, nationally, and worldwide.